Don't be shy renting a car!...
by Dade_Murphy
Don't be shy renting a car! Berlin has good trafficsigns and guide you mostly to your aimingpoint.
(well, it's better when the a man read the map;-)) every july the famous 'Love Parade' takes place in berlin. Then the city is in state of emergency cause over 1.000.000 People celebrate for Love and peace!
(a kind of extraordinary carnival)
Style of wearing trousers !!...
by Laurike
Style of wearing trousers !! It was really interesting to see a lot of teenagers with trouses, which they could loose !! And all kind of underwear !! Unbelievable !! i thing, this is the last cream of fashion, but.. sometimes it is just not so nice :)
(2) - Soviet War Memorial
by Kakapo2
There are several Soviet War Memorials in Berlin, the most visited surely the OTHER one on Straße des 17. Juni, as it is located along the boulevard which links Brandenburger Tor and Siegessäule, and the people just walk past. It requires a little effort to get to THIS memorial, as there are no other famous attractions around it, and you have to walk quite a bit from the S-Bahn station.
The memorial in the centre of Treptower Park is the biggest one of its kind in Germany, and although rather kitschy it did not deter me at all. Its magnitude took me by surprise, and the workmanship impressed me. Sure, if you know how history went on after World War II and how the theory of real socialism in the eastern part of Germany and Europe ended, you cannot take the message seriously. But separated from its content and the execution of the work, it is well worth a visit.
The memorial is not just a memorial. It is a memorial park within Treptower Park. It was created from 1946 to 1949 at the site of a former huge playground, and is a cemetery for more than 5000 Soviet soldiers as well as a monument for the victory over the Nazis and fascism. They needed 40,000 cubic metres of granite to build the monument. Every year on 8 May, the day of the liberation, a memorial service takes place. But the state does not hold ceremonies there anymore. The last official military act was on 31 August 1994 when the Russian troops retreated from GDR.
In times of separation the monument was the symbol of GDR’s founding myth: East-Germany freed from the claws of suppression, incorporating the everlasting appeal to follow in the footsteps of the heroes who had successfully fought for socialism and freedom.
A collective of architects and artists collaborated to achieve the impressive result. The architect Jakov S. Belopolski, the sculptor Yevgeni Wutshetitch, the painter Alexander A. Gorpenko and the engineer Sarra S. Valerius were the heads of the project.
KaDeWe
by matcrazy1 about KaDeWe (Kaufhaus des Westens)
This huge, not very pretty, grey building on my picture housed very elegant and the biggest department store in Germany and in Europe founded in 1907 and called KaDeWe.
It was pretty crowded on Saturday early afternoon, so we had to wait a minute to get into an elevator/lift. It was really huge store and after searching woman's clothes store we coudn't find lifts for a while.
On the ground floor we found a lot of parfumeries, ReiseCenter (travel center) and departmens with Samsonite and other bags for travelers. Hmm... Samsonite suitcases were 10-20% more expensive than the same ones in Poland.
On the last 6h fllor in huge deli there were packages of Berlin gifts (food and drinks: sweets, champagns, wine + Berlin bear - mascot) at a price above 100.00 ? each. The most expensive wine costed 298.00 ? for a bottle of French Bordeaux from 1944: Chateau Latour, Pauillac.
HOURS:
Mon - Fri: 10.00 am - 8.00 pm
Sat: 9.30 am - 8.00 pm
Sunday: closed. Everything was sold there. Rather expensive department store but good quality always costs a lot.
Travel Passes
by PaulKirk
Buy a 2 or 3 day travel pass when you get to Berlin. It will cover all S-bahn, U-bahn and bus routes except the commercial sightseeing tours. A 72 hour pass for zones A&B cost Eur19 in April 2006 whilst to include the outer C zone the cost goes up to Eur22. You'll only need this if you want to go to Potsdam or the extreme limits of the transport system. If you don't buy a pass a two hour ticket costs Eur2.20. Don't forget to validate the ticket before riding the network. It's a fine if you don't.